Marco Jansen, Deepti Sharma named ICC Men's, Women's Players of the Month for October

Jansens decisive contributions with bat and ball against Australia helped him reach the top of two ICC Mens Test Player Rankings categories, while Sharma delivered a series of impactful performances in Indias white-ball sweep of Zimbabwe to secure her second womens award, having previously won in December 2023, according to ICC Media release.

Jansen accumulated 198 runs and claimed 13 wickets with his left-arm pace bowling during the period. His standout performance came in the second of the three-match ICC World Test Championship series against Australia, where he scored a crucial 85 and returned match figures of five for 33 and one for 34 in Gqeberha.

Those efforts propelled the 26-year-old to the top of both the ICC Test Bowling and All-rounder Rankings. He became the first South African bowler to occupy the number one position since Kagiso Rabada in 2024, and the first player from the country to top the all-rounders list since Vernon Philander in August 2014.

Jansen won the award ahead of Pakistans Arafat Minhas and West Indies captain Shai Hope, who were also shortlisted following impressive performances during October.

Jansen said: Winning the ICC Mens Player of the Month award is a great honour for me, particularly after such a competitive series against Australia. It was one of the most memorable series of my career, and being able to contribute to the teams success made it even more special. To receive this recognition as well is something Im incredibly proud of.

Individual recognition is always rewarding, but cricket is a team sport and this achievement is testament to the support of my teammates and the work of our support staff, who have backed us throughout. We grateful to them all, and our focus now is on building on this momentum as we continue our push to reach the ICC World Test Championship Final next year.

Sharma earned the womens award after making significant contributions with both bat and ball in Indias home tour against Zimbabwe. In the ICC Womens Championship ODI series, she scored 106 not out in her only batting opportunity and claimed five wickets at an economy rate of 3.42 as India completed a 3-0 sweep.

Her success included the T20I series, where she again batted only once, smashing 49 off 37 balls, while taking two wickets with her off-spin bowling.

The award marks Sharmas second ICC Womens Player of the Month honour, following her first in December 2023. She was selected ahead of Bangladeshs Sobhana Mostary and Australias Annabel Sutherland, who completed the womens shortlist.

Sharma said: Im pleased to win the ICC Womens Player of the Month award. The series against Zimbabwe was a great one for us, and Im proud of the way the team performed, especially the youngsters. Scoring a century was a particularly special moment for me, made even more meaningful as it contributed to a winning cause."

I would like to thank the voting panel and fans for this recognition, as well as my teammates and coaches for their continued support. I would like to dedicate this award to my fans across the world." (ANI)